Monday, June 15, 2009

We can see clearly now, the crappy windows are gone!

We have windows!! Hooray! Here are some pics:

Our delivery:


The guys get to work... get to work smashing our peonies. Awesome. Thanks dudes.


Bedroom before:


And after:


Ripping out old windows:


Bathroom before... I will miss this style of window -- I won't miss the breeze that came through it in the dead of winter


Bathroom after (almost):


Old dining room windows:


And after:


It is so great to be able to open the windows for fresh air now. I am definitely glad we splurged.

In other news, the stoop continues to crack:


We called the cement company and approved their bid. We think they either a) forgot or b) are too busy with more profitable projects. Hubby will give them a call next week to see what the deal is...

In the meantime, the rails are scraped and ready for new paint.


Also, we finally painted our front door. Here I am, hard at work (I know, you like my style):


Hubby works on the frame:


And the finished product:


We are contemplating a new screen door. I feel the current door blocks the lovely green too much. Maybe something like this instead:


We also could use a new house number and definitely new landscaping. The dying bushes aren't really lighting our fire... though we do like the purpley leafy thorny thing on the left side of the picture. But new landscaping is for another year...

Door is green on the inside too, because I liked the color so much:


Here is another green door. My friend S recently resided her house, as well as got/painted a new front door, got new windows in the front, and added a hand painted sign. Check it out:

Before:


After:

View of front:


The emerald curtain (actually, kind of spring green):


Handmade address sign:


On another note, here are a couple of pics of spring in the backyard:


Barry's growing nicely... also, check out the deck... the next post will probably include an update on this deck...


Another mystery we're exploring...
We've started to get some significant seepage in the basement when it rains. I was tired of wet, smelly carpet, and freaking out about mold possibly growing behind the wall. So a couple of Fridays ago, we did some impromtu demo:


Tore off part of the wall and cut up a chunk of the carpet... This is what we found:


Interestingly enough, the previous homeowners were "not aware of any water problems". Yet there is a patch job and a new piece of wood there... hmmm...

Nasty stained carpet with a fan nearby to help dry the smelly, wet carpet:


We are still trying to super sleuth out the reason for this seepage. Having the basement partially tore up has lit a fire under me to $ave, $ave, $ave for a basement renovation. I have started to sketch out my plans... this is just an early idea...

Before:

After:

Essentially, we divide the non-laundry area a bit, add a room with a wall of closets for storage, and also add a 1/2 bath in the area underneath our main floor bath.

Finally... a tip:
When you paint multiple rooms in your house, mark the top of the paint cans with the room painted. Most people probably do this.

We did not.

Here, we tried to touch up the wall in the foyer, but kept picking the wrong color -- unfortunately light grey, light green and cream all kind of look the same-ish until the color dries:


The repainted foyer will probably be in the next post too!

TTFN!
C+A
(since the photos on here always make us look so rough, here is a cute one)


PS: If you haven't seen UP, stop what you are doing now and go see it.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Check to see if water is seeping through the window in the basement. Sometimes water can find its way between the window frame and the foundation wall. Some caulk on the outside should fix it (if that is the problem). Good luck.

Shane said...

If it is a crack in the foundation that is leaking, and not the window, I'd recommend getting an inch of spray foam installed up against the foundation. It'll seal up the crack permanently and give you R7 worth of insulation. You can have just that small spot sprayed for pretty cheap. Around here, it averages $1.75/ft^2 per inch of thickness.

C+A said...

Spray foam is in position and window has been caulked... and there is still leaking. We're hoping this week's rain will help us figure this out...

Shane said...

What type of spray foam are you talking about? The stuff I'm referring to isn't the "Great Stuff" from a can. It is actually sprayed on using a spray gun that is connected to two canisters (usually best left to professionals). If you had that stuff put onto the foundation, then the window is the likely candidate.

Unknown said...

What a difference those windows and newly painted door make! Green, green and more green, love it! Good luck with the basement. We also have developed a nasty leak in our basement. Let us know if you fix yours and maybe we'll piggyback on your solution ideas!

Anonymous said...

Love the pictures! Keep up the good work. Mom N.

Kasey at Thrifty Little Blog said...

I'm drooling over all of your new windows. They have a way of making the entire room feel newer.